EMLA.RTM. cream is the only product on the market giving anaesthesia of intact skin. EMLA.RTM. cream is administered to the skin under occlusion for 60 minutes. In order to obtain faster onset of anaesthesia other local anaesthetic agents and vehicle systems have been tested (Refs. Freeman, et al., Pediatr. Anaesthesia 1993:3, 129). For tetracaine, an old well-known topical anaesthetic agent, there are several patent applications for different formulations, among them a cream and a patch (Refs. Woolfson and McCafferty, WO 88/09169 and Smith & Nephew, EP 0175609 respectively). WO 88/09169 discloses an onset time of approximately 30 minutes for the tetracaine cream and EP 0175609 discloses an onset time of approximately 30-45 minutes for the tetracaine patch. None of these formulations are so far on the market.